Reddit reviews iConnectivity mio 1-in 1-out USB to MIDI Interface for Mac and PC
We found 12 Reddit comments about iConnectivity mio 1-in 1-out USB to MIDI Interface for Mac and PC. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
Natively compatible with most operating systems PC (from Windows XP SP3 to Windows 8) Mac (OS X 10.4 or greater)Plug and play - no drivers or difficult installation neededUltra Low latency MIDI Input and Output5-Foot Long USB to MIDI DIN 1 In & 1 Out Cable; USB Bus PoweredDesigned by iConnectivity's Award Winning Design Team in Canada. Please refer the User Guide before use.
I'd recommend avoiding the cheap, no-name ones like this. Sometimes they just don't work at all, or sometimes they'll work for certain things (note-on) but not others (SysEx dumps, sequencer data, etc.). I actually had one that I connected to one of my synths, and it sent a bunch of garbled MIDI data that caused me to lose some patches.
If you can afford it, I'd recommend something like the $35 iConnectivity mio. I've had 3 different iConnectivity interfaces, and all have been rock solid and dependable. This doesn't require any drivers, whereas I think the equivalent cables by Yamaha, Roland, M-Audio do.
He's talking audio, and you are talking control (midi)? I use this midi cable: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CO5IRSG. to control my volcas. Any decent usb audio device with good A/D converters should be fine for grabbing audio.
Unfortunately, the cheap USB-to-MIDI converters like that one have issues with stuck notes on the Mother-32. I have an iConnectMIDI2+ that works great with my Mother-32. I haven't tried the mio, but since it's from iConnectivity, it is probably better than the cheap adapters.
You want a midi interface of some sort. This can range from a small box with multiple in/out ports, or a cable like this: https://www.amazon.com/iConnectivity-mio-1-out-MIDI-Interface/dp/B00CO5IRSG/
The Mio is the cheapest option I'd recommend; I recently heard from someone else that they tried a bunch of cheaper chinese conversion cables before the Mio, and none of them worked.
Once connected, you go to Options>Midi in FL Studio, and the midi interface will appear as a device there. So you select it and assign it a port number (let's say port #1 for these purposes). Then in your instruments panel, you click click then select insert>midi>Midi Out. Then on the Midi Out, you change the port number to match the desire device (i.e. port #1) and then whenever you select the midi out "instrument" your keyboard will play the Volca as if it's a plugin in FL.
Granted, you won't hear your Volca in the DAW's audio stream on your computer unless it's connected via an audio interface. But if you have headphones or speakers plugged into the Volca's audio/headphone out, you can still play and hear it that way.
Came here to post exactly this....
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This product is $35 and may be exactly what you need. Incredibly reliable and nothing to program, just plug it in, and it works -- Mio1 Midi Interface
I use the exact same setup as you! Here's what you need:
Do what that other user said and download MIDI-OX. Plug your drums into your PC via USB. Don't cheap out on the USB to MIDI converter-- the $9 generic/cheap foreign ones on Amazon might be tempting, but none of them worked for this setup when I tried. I finally caved and bought a nice $30 one from Guitar Center and it works flawlessly. Plug one end of it into your PC, and plug the MIDI end marked "MIDI out" into the Rock Band MIDI Pro Adapter, which in turn plugs into the console through USB. So essentially, it goes drums-->PC-->USB to MIDI cable-->Pro Adapter-->console.
Power up the drums and open MIDI-OX before turning on the console. Go to Options--> MIDI Devices, select "e-drums" as the input, and your USB to MIDI cable as the output (different ones are labeled differently, but it'll likely have USB in the name). The program will remember these settings so you only need to do it once as long as you remember to plug everything in before opening MIDI-OX. Power on your console and you're good to go! I'm extremely surprised how well it works. I don't even need to change my calibration at all!
Edit: here's the USB to MIDI converter I use:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CO5IRSG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_D.sFybT0WPZEQ
http://amzn.com/B00CO5IRSG This or any iConnectivity one would be my recommendation because I've used a lot of this brand and it's always great, but that Tbox thing looks pretty awesome too!
Edit: pasted wrong link first.
I dont know bc Ive never used it w Ableton but Im quite sure it does...you just need something like this to connect yr computer to it... https://www.amazon.com/iConnectivity-mio-1-out-MIDI-Interface/dp/B00CO5IRSG
You can buy one of these
Then hook it up to your computer, download and install Reaper, and find some free piano VSTs that will sound better. The sound will be coming from your computer, instead of the keyboard.
I personally don't use this, but should work with most laptops. I use FL studio, but it's a little expensive to buy.
This is the one I use and it works fine for only $35.
There's also these from more reliable manufacturers; seem to be same price.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Roland-UM-ONE-mk2-MIDI-Interface/dp/B00967UN50/ref=sr_1_1?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1491346657&sr=1-1&keywords=usb+midi+interface
https://www.amazon.co.uk/iConnectivity-midi-mio-iconnectivity-Mio/dp/B00CO5IRSG